Internationale groepsreis Atlas Descent

Activities

Small Adult Group

Food

All breakfasts, 6 lunches and 5 dinners are included. Moroccan food is excellent, though not particularly varied. Breakfasts usually consist of bread, croissants and jam with tea or coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice. Lunch will be prepared by the drivers and served on the bonnet of a 4x4, it normally consists of pasta, rice, bread, salad, tuna and Nutella for desert. The meal on the last night will be eaten out in Agadir, there is a good selection of restaurants including French, Italian and of course Moroccan. The guide can recommend the best ones, dinner will normally cost between 200 – 300 Dirhams per person (about 15 - £20). The hotels in Tafraoute, immouzer and Agadir all have bars serving alcohol, a beer will cost about 20 Dirhams (£1.50) and a bottle of wine will be around 120 Dirhams (£9).

Activities

Guided Group

Food

All breakfasts, 6 lunches and 5 dinners are included. Moroccan food is excellent, though not particularly varied. Breakfasts usually consist of bread, croissants and jam with tea or coffee and delicious freshly squeezed orange juice. Lunch will be prepared by the drivers and served on the bonnet of the 4x4 support vehicles, this will normally consist of bread, pasta, rice, salad and tuna. For dinner you can expect meat and vegetarian Tagine, couscous and omelettes. The support vehicles will carry a good selection of chewy bars and soft drinks. All of the hotels we use have bars serving coffee for about £1 and beer for around £1.50.

Moroccan food is excellent, though not particularly varied. Breakfasts usually consist of bread, croissants and jam with tea or coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice. Meals eaten out are reasonably priced - a lamb or chicken tagine (a local speciality) will cost about GBP5 (approx. . USD8). In main towns it is possible to find very good French and Moroccan restaurants where a meal and French wine will cost anything from GBP15 (approx. . USD25) upwards. Local beers, wines and soft drinks are available at very reasonable prices, but you can pay UK prices or more for imported alcohol. Your leader can help recommend restaurants for the one evening where dinner is not included.
Vegetarians can be catered for but there is a fairly limited choice of vegetarian tajine, cous cous, omelettes and salad. This is particularly the case during the more rural sections of the trip.
Please note that if you have any special dietary requirements you should inform the Exodus Office prior to the trip. If you have a specific medical/dietary need (i.e. coeliac or vegan) you may find it helpful to bring some items of food with you from home.
Bottled drinking water is included whilst cycling.

Activities

Accom: hotel/lodge

Adult group

Cycling

Cycling: off road

Serious adventure

1

Start Agadir

Fly to Agadir and transfer to our hotel in the evening.

2

Transfer to Tafraoute in the heart of the Anti Atlas Mountains. Introductory ride through a lunar landscape, passing the famous painted Blue Rocks.

Setting off from Agadir in our four wheel drive vehicles, we drive across the plains of the Souss Valley. We climb into the heart of the Anti Atlas range, reaching the high mountain Pass of Tizi Mlil, above the old garrison town of Tafraoute (3 hour transfer). From here we descend on a rocky, vehicle width track down to Aguerd Oudad where we rejoin the vehicles, and head on to the gritty pistes through the extraordinary boulder strewn moonscape to the famous painted rocks. Following non-technical gravel tracks across the high altitude plains we return to Tafraoute on a mix of good tarmac and sections of sweeping singletrack through the beautiful palmeries. Today's ride is a relatively easy introduction to prepare us for the days to come.
Approximate distance cycled 35km

3

Spectacular ride through impressive gorges and lush palmeries around Ait Mansour. A rough and rocky day with 35km descent and optional tarmac climb towards the end.

Today's ride follows a spectacular route through the impressive gorges and lush palmeries around Ait Mansour. After a short transfer high into the mountains behind Tafraoute to Tizi Tasrite, we begin the 70km ride, descending through the landscape that contrasts so dramatically with what we saw yesterday. The ride descends through impressive gorges and follows dry riverbeds in places, where the scenery is superb, then we pass through many villages. 30km is off road and 40km is on tarmac, including some major downhill (and one long optional climb on tarmac), then we return to the hotel on the bikes. Back in Tafraoute we can relax in the hotel bar before spending the evening sharing a home-cooked meal and a carpet demonstration with a local family.
Approximate distance cycled 75km

4

Transfer to Tizi Mlil Pass for an exhilarating descent to Tahala and a great ride back to Tafraout.

A short transfer takes us back to the high pass of Tizi Mlil (the start of Day 2’s ride). From here we take a 20km high mountain trail above Tafraoute leading to Tizi Tasrite. Stunning views of our previous ride are clearly visible far below. Before the village of Tasrite, there is a short optional singletrack section which leads on to the start of a superb 10km switchback, off road mountain descent. The first 4kms of the trail are rough and rocky (and are ridden without a support vehicle) then the trail gets smoother and the flowing gritty pistes return. A short section of smooth tarmac gives a little relief from the rocks, before rejoining a fantastic, fast flowing piste trail through the plains and oases of Tafraoute, where gazelle are sometimes seen grazing amidst the boulder strewn rocks. After lunch we take a short section of tarmac to the village of Fisli and then ride on an old piste over the plains back to Tafraout where we rejoin our singletrack through palmeries back to the hotel. Once back in Tafraoute there will be time to visit the town, or relax by the hotel pool.
Approximate distance cycled 55km

5

Ride down to the old walled town of Tiznit. Optional visit to silver markets and traditional Hamman.

We drive for about an hour southwest from Tafraoute to the start of today’s ride. After a short off road climb to a high col, there is a choice of a steep technical singletrack descent (followed by a short climb), or a more leisurely piste trail with stunning views. We then take a superb switchback piste trail, nearly 20km down off the mountain, past a number of traditional villages en route to Anezi. A short tarmac stretch offers a break from the stony terrain, but the piste soon returns winding its way through a scenic valley and crossing riverbeds. At the end of the ride, we transfer approx 30 minutes to Tiznit, an old walled medina town famous for its silver markets. There is a traditional hammam (steam bath) here that we can visit in the late afternoon, or you can relax by the hotel pool.
Approximate distance cycled 45km

6

Drive into High Atlas Mountains where the landscape is very different; ride through pine forests and mountain villages of the Tiqqi Gorge to Imouzzer.

After an early breakfast and morning transfer (approx. 3.5 hours) we arrive at the small village of Tiqqi in the foothills of the High Atlas. The landscape here is very different, with Pine and Cedar forests and remote mountainside villages dominating the area. Initially, our track leads past several untouched Berber villages. Mud houses are perched precariously under cliff edges, with locals looking on as we cycle through. After riding across country for several kilometres the track becomes slightly rockier, and we come to a spectacular gorge. Having lunch here, there is time to admire the views and contemplate the two afternoon climbs, before our final fast flowing cross-country ride down to tarmac. Rejoining the tarmac we cycle downhill for the last few kilometres to our hotel in Immouzer.
Approximate distance cycled 35km

7

The ultimate off road finale, through remote villages down to the Atlantic Ocean for a swim; drive to Agadir.

The ultimate off road trail and a fitting finale to this biking adventure! From the hotel a spectacular descent takes us to the coast. Riding directly from the hotel, we take the short scenic tarmac road through the village of Immouzer, before ascending a rough track which gradually climbs for 6km onto a high mountain pass. From here the blast down to the coast begins with a spectacular 40km mountain descent. The trail is rough and rocky in places as it contours and gradually descends, offering amazing views over the mountains and to the coastline. Poor weather may make this particular route impassable, in which case we will make our way out of the mountains through the Paradise Valley. This route follows a spectacular winding tarmac road, dropping from the ridges around Immouzer, deep into a narrow gorge, abundant with palm trees and small oases. After a swim or stroll on the beach, we load the bikes onto the support vehicles for the last drive into Agadir (approx. 30 minutes), arriving in time for an optional, relaxing berber massage and a farewell dinner.
Approximate distance cycled 55km